Responding to a Debt Collection Lawsuit in Florida
Most people who are sued over a debt lose by doing nothing. You do not have to. This guide walks the response to a Florida debt-collection lawsuit in order — finding your deadline, filing an answer, the defenses that win these cases, and protecting your paycheck, bank account, and home if a judgment is entered.
What this guide covers
- You've been sued — don't ignore it
- First: find your deadline
- Who is suing you — creditor vs. debt buyer
- Reading the complaint & its exhibits
- What the other side must prove
- Answer or motion — and why an answer is safest
- Writing & filing your answer (+ template)
- Is the debt too old? The statute of limitations
- Never accidentally revive an old debt
- Other defenses worth knowing
- Make them prove it: discovery (+ template)
- Talking settlement — get it in writing
- If a default judgment was entered
- Protecting your wages, bank & home
- When the collector broke the law: FDCPA & FCCPA
- Checklist & free legal research
Start Here
Being sued over a debt is not the same as losing
Most consumer-debt cases in Florida end in a default judgment — not because the debt was proven, but because the person who was sued never responded.
A debt-collection lawsuit can be frightening, but it is a civil case like any other, and it follows rules the collector must also follow. The single most damaging mistake is to ignore it. If you do nothing, the other side wins automatically. If you respond — even imperfectly — you keep your defenses alive, and many of these cases turn out to be winnable or highly negotiable.
Why so many cases are winnable
A large share of debt suits are filed by debt buyers — companies that purchase pools of charged-off accounts as bulk data, often for pennies on the dollar. They frequently do not receive the signed agreement, the full account statements, or a complete, account-level chain of assignment. When a defendant appears and forces the plaintiff to prove it actually owns this account, that proof gap is where cases are dismissed or settled cheaply.
Filing a written response — or, in small claims, simply appearing on your court date — is what stops an automatic loss. Everything in this guide starts from that one step.
Your time to respond starts the day you were served, not the day you read the papers. Find your deadline first (next section) and calendar it before doing anything else.
Step 1 · Deadline
First, find your deadline — it depends on the track
Florida debt suits run on two very different tracks, and they have completely different first steps.
Debt cases are filed in county court, which handles civil claims up to $50,000.2 How you respond depends on the amount:
Formal county civil (a "complaint")
If you were served with a summons and complaint, you must serve a written response — an answer or a motion — within 20 days after you were served.1
Counting the 20 days
Do not count the day you were served; count every calendar day after that, and if the last day is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, you have until the end of the next business day.5 Use the date on the process server's or sheriff's return of service as your starting point, and file several days early.
In a small claims case, missing the pretrial conference — even though no written answer was "due" — lets the plaintiff take a default against you. Put the date on your calendar the moment you are served.4
Step 2 · Identify
Who is actually suing you?
The name in the caption tells you a great deal about how hard the case will be for the plaintiff to prove.
The original creditor
The bank or lender you dealt with (e.g., the card issuer). It is most likely to have your signed agreement and statements.
A collection law firm
Suing on behalf of the original creditor or a debt buyer. Look past the firm to see who the real plaintiff is.
A debt buyer
A company (for example, Midland Funding, Portfolio Recovery, LVNV, or Cavalry) that bought the account after charge-off. It must prove it owns your specific account — often its weakest point.
A company that regularly collects Florida consumers' debts generally must register as a consumer collection agency with the Office of Financial Regulation.13 You can search the OFR's licensee database to see whether the plaintiff is registered.
Step 3 · Read
Read the complaint and its exhibits closely
The complaint tells you the legal theory, the amount claimed, and — just as important — what the plaintiff did and did not attach.
Identify the cause(s) of action pleaded. Debt cases usually plead one or more of: breach of contract, "account stated" (an agreement that a stated balance is correct), "open account," or unjust enrichment. Then look at the exhibits. Florida requires a party suing on a contract, note, or account to attach the document — or the material portions — to the complaint.6
A complaint that alleges a written credit agreement but attaches only a generic terms booklet you never signed — or nothing at all — may be vulnerable, and it signals the plaintiff may not have the proof it needs.6
Step 3 · Read
What the plaintiff must actually prove
To win at trial or on summary judgment, a debt plaintiff generally has to establish three things. Every one is a place you can push back.
Ownership (standing)
If the plaintiff is not the original creditor, it must prove an unbroken chain of assignment transferring your account to it. A generic bulk "bill of sale" without account-level proof is a classic gap.
The obligation and its terms
That an enforceable agreement existed and was breached (for a contract theory).
The amount
The balance owed, supported by statements and a computation — not just a number in the complaint.
Step 4 · Respond
Answer or motion — and why an answer is usually safest
In a formal case you may respond by an answer or by certain motions. For most self-represented defendants, a written answer is the surest move.
Some defenses can be raised by motion before you answer — including improper service, lack of jurisdiction, improper venue, and failure to state a cause of action — and filing such a motion extends your time to answer until the court rules.7 A motion to dismiss tests only the legal sufficiency of the complaint; it does not resolve facts.
An answer, by contrast, responds to every allegation and preserves the widest range of defenses. Unless you see a clear, technical defect, filing a timely answer that denies the key allegations and raises your affirmative defenses is the safest course — it avoids the risk that a motion is denied and your answer deadline slips.
Admit, deny, or state you are "without knowledge" (which operates as a denial) for each numbered paragraph. Anything you do not deny can be treated as admitted — so deny the paragraphs claiming ownership of the debt and the amount owed if you have any genuine doubt.8
Step 4 · Template
Sample: Answer and Affirmative Defenses
Respond to every paragraph, then list only the affirmative defenses that fit your facts. Serve it on the plaintiff's lawyer and keep proof of service.
Defendant, YOUR NAME, appearing self-represented, answers the Complaint:
Defense · The Big One
Is the debt too old? The statute of limitations
Time limits are the single most powerful defense in a debt case — but only if you raise them. The court will not apply them for you.
Florida's limitations periods live in Chapter 95. For debt cases the key periods are:
Written contract — 5 years
An action founded on a written instrument.10
Open account / not on a written instrument — 4 years
Store accounts and obligations not founded on a signed writing.10
Medical debt — 3 years
An action to collect medical debt for services by a licensed facility, running from the date the facility refers the debt to a third party for collection.10
The clock generally starts when the cause of action accrues — for a defaulted account, commonly the date of the last payment or the first missed payment that was never cured.11
Whether a credit-card balance carries the 5-year (written) or 4-year (open account) period is disputed in Florida and often turns on whether the plaintiff can produce the actual signed agreement. If it cannot, the shorter period is a strong argument — which is one more reason to demand the documents in discovery.
The statute of limitations is an affirmative defense — you must plead it in your answer or you can waive it.9
Defense · Protect Yourself
Never accidentally revive an old debt
A single phone call or small payment can restart the limitations clock on a debt that was already too old to enforce.
In Florida, an acknowledgment of — or promise to pay — a debt barred by the statute of limitations only counts if it is in writing and signed by the person to be charged.12 The practical lesson: do not make a token payment on, or sign anything acknowledging, an old debt until you understand whether the limitations period has already run — doing so can revive a claim the collector could not otherwise win.
A time-barred debt is not erased, and a collector may still ask you to pay. But limitations is a complete defense if you raise it — and suing or threatening suit on a debt the collector knows is time-barred can itself violate the law (see the FDCPA and FCCPA section).
Defense · The Menu
Other defenses worth knowing
Pick the defenses that match your facts — do not throw in ones that do not apply.
Lack of standing / no documents
The plaintiff cannot prove it owns the account, or failed to attach the required documents.6
Account stated deficiencies
You never agreed to, or received, a statement of the balance the plaintiff claims.
Payment / accord and satisfaction
The debt was paid, or settled for a different performance that was rendered.
Improper service
You were never properly served — raise it promptly; it can defeat the judgment.7
Step 5 · Discovery
Make them prove it: use discovery
Discovery is where a well-defended debt case is usually won, because it forces the plaintiff to produce the documents — or admit it cannot.
In a formal county civil case, the 2025 rules require early initial disclosures and measure requests against a proportionality standard.14 Your most useful tools are a request for production for the account documents,15 requests for admission (unanswered requests are deemed admitted), and short interrogatories about how and when the plaintiff acquired the account.
In a small claims case ($8,000 or less), the full civil discovery rules do not apply automatically. If you want to send discovery, ask the judge to authorize it (the standard form is a Motion to Invoke the Rules of Civil Procedure).
Step 5 · Template
Sample: Request for the Account Documents
Demand the exact documents a debt buyer often cannot produce — the signed agreement, the full statements, and the account-level chain of assignment.
Pursuant to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.350, Defendant requests that Plaintiff produce the following within 30 days:
Step 6 · Resolve
Talking settlement — but get it in writing
Debt buyers bought the account at a deep discount and often settle for far less than the face amount, especially once you appear and file a substantive answer.
If you negotiate, get the agreement in writing before you pay. Insist that it states your payment fully satisfies the debt and that the case will be dismissed with prejudice. Be cautious with installment plans, and understand that a settlement can have tax and credit-reporting consequences.
The economics change the moment you file an answer and serve discovery. Litigation cost and proof risk are what bring a realistic settlement offer — silence brings a default judgment instead.
If It's Too Late
If a default judgment was already entered
A default is not always the end. Florida law lets you ask the court to set aside a judgment in defined circumstances.
A default and default judgment can be entered when a defendant fails to respond in time.16 You may move for relief from a final judgment for reasons including mistake, excusable neglect, newly discovered evidence, fraud, or that the judgment is void.17 Motions based on mistake, neglect, or newly discovered evidence must be filed within one year; there is no fixed one-year bar to attacking a void judgment — for example, one entered without valid service.17 Courts generally expect a showing of excusable neglect, a meritorious defense, and prompt action.
Time and diligence matter. If you learn of a default judgment, act immediately — the longer you wait, the harder relief becomes, and money can be collected in the meantime.
Protect · Exemptions
Protecting your paycheck, bank account, and home
A judgment creditor can pursue garnishment and levy — but Florida law shields important property, and some protections are among the strongest in the country.
Head-of-family wages
All disposable earnings of a head of family that are $750 or less per week are exempt from garnishment; more can be garnished only if you agreed in writing. Exempt wages deposited in an account stay protected for six months if they can be traced.18
Homestead
Your Florida homestead is exempt from forced sale by most creditors, subject to constitutional exceptions such as taxes and mortgages.19
Other exemptions
Florida also exempts certain personal property and a motor vehicle up to set limits, and protects many retirement and public-benefit funds.
If your wages or bank account are garnished, you generally must file a claim of exemption within the short deadline stated on the notice, or you can lose the protection. Do not assume the court will apply it for you.18
Your Rights
When the collector broke the law: FDCPA & FCCPA
Abusive collection conduct can turn you from a defendant into a plaintiff — with statutory damages and attorney's fees available.
Before suit, a debt collector must send a written validation notice, and if you dispute the debt in writing within 30 days, it must stop collecting until it mails you verification.20 Under the federal FDCPA, a consumer can recover actual damages, statutory damages up to $1,000, and costs plus a reasonable attorney's fee, with a one-year deadline to sue.21 Florida's FCCPA prohibits practices such as simulating legal process, communicating under the guise of an attorney, and enforcing a debt the collector knows is not legitimate,22 and it provides actual damages, statutory damages up to $1,000, costs, and attorney's fees — and reaches any person, not just third-party collectors.23
If the collector's conduct violated these laws, you can raise it as a counterclaim in the collection suit or file separately. The availability of attorney's fees is what makes consumer lawyers willing to take these cases.
Before You File
A quick response checklist
- I found my deadline (20 days to respond, or a small-claims court date) and calendared it.
- I identified who is suing me — original creditor or debt buyer.
- I read the complaint and noted what documents were and were not attached.
- I responded to every numbered paragraph — admit, deny, or without knowledge.
- I pleaded the statute of limitations if the debt might be too old.
- I did not make a payment or sign anything that could revive an old debt.
- I served a request for the signed agreement, statements, and chain of assignment.
- If garnished, I filed a claim of exemption within the deadline on the notice.
Where to find Florida law — for free
Deadlines, dollar figures, and procedures change, and every county has its own clerk requirements. Confirm the current rule and your court's procedures before you file. For more OLSI guides, visit openlawservices.org.
Sources & Authorities
Endnotes
Every legal proposition in this guide is grounded in the authorities below, cited in Bluebook form and verified against official Florida and federal sources as of July 2026.
- Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.140(a)(1) (defendant must serve an answer within 20 days after service of original process and the initial pleading). ↩
- § 34.01, Fla. Stat. (2025) (county court civil jurisdiction where the amount in controversy does not exceed $50,000, exclusive of interest, costs, and attorney's fees). ↩
- Fla. Sm. Cl. R. 7.010(b) (small claims rules apply to county-court actions demanding money or property not exceeding $8,000, exclusive of costs, interest, and attorney's fees). ↩
- Fla. Sm. Cl. R. 7.090 (initial pretrial conference set not more than 50 days from filing; personal appearance required; failure to appear may result in a default). ↩
- Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.090 (computation of time; excluding the first day and extending deadlines that fall on weekends and legal holidays). ↩
- Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.130(a) (contracts, notes, and accounts on which an action is brought, or the material portions, must be attached to or incorporated in the pleading). ↩
- Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.140(b) (defenses that may be raised by motion, including insufficiency of service of process and failure to state a cause of action; motion extends the time to serve a responsive pleading). ↩
- Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.110 (general rules of pleading; a party must admit or deny each averment; averments not denied may be deemed admitted). ↩
- Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.110(d) (statute of limitations and other affirmative defenses must be pleaded). ↩
- § 95.11(2)(b), Fla. Stat. (2025) (five years — action founded on a written instrument); § 95.11(3)(j) (four years — obligation not founded on a written instrument, including store accounts); § 95.11(4) (three years — action to collect medical debt for services by a facility licensed under ch. 395, running from referral for collection). ↩
- § 95.031, Fla. Stat. (2025) (a cause of action accrues when the last element occurs). ↩
- § 95.04, Fla. Stat. (2025) (an acknowledgment of or promise to pay a debt barred by limitations must be in writing and signed by the person to be charged). ↩
- § 559.553, Fla. Stat. (2025) (registration of consumer collection agencies required, subject to statutory exemptions). ↩
- In re Amends. to Fla. Rules of Civ. P., 386 So. 3d 497 (Fla. 2024) (eff. Jan. 1, 2025) (adding required initial disclosures and a proportionality standard to Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.280 and active case management under Rule 1.200). ↩
- Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.350 (requests for production of documents, including electronically stored information). ↩
- Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.500 (defaults and final judgments upon default). ↩
- Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.540(b) (relief from judgment for mistake, excusable neglect, newly discovered evidence, fraud, or a void judgment; one-year limit for grounds (1)–(3); no fixed time bar for a void judgment). ↩
- § 222.11, Fla. Stat. (2025) (head-of-family wage exemption; disposable earnings of $750 or less per week fully exempt; deposited exempt earnings remain protected for six months if traceable). ↩
- Art. X, § 4(a)(1), Fla. Const. (homestead exempt from forced sale, subject to enumerated exceptions). ↩
- 15 U.S.C. § 1692g (debt validation; on a written dispute within 30 days, the collector must cease collection until it mails verification). ↩
- 15 U.S.C. § 1692k (actual damages, statutory damages up to $1,000, costs and a reasonable attorney's fee; one-year limitations period). ↩
- § 559.72, Fla. Stat. (2025) (prohibited collection practices under the Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act). ↩
- § 559.77, Fla. Stat. (2025) (civil remedies: actual damages, statutory damages up to $1,000, punitive damages, costs, and reasonable attorney's fees; two-year limitations period). ↩
A note on citations: Florida statutes and rules are periodically amended and renumbered, and the classification of a credit-card balance for limitations purposes can depend on the documents in a given case. Always confirm the current text of any rule, statute, or case, and your court's local procedures, before relying on it.